The Lord of the Rings
is the second bestselling novel of all time (surpassed only by Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities)*. It was a long time coming. Tolkien began
it in 1934, but he had a full-time job as professor of English Language
and Literature at Merton College, Oxford. (He was also a Fellow at
Pembroke College, Oxford.) By the time he considered the work complete, it
was 1945 and the manuscript ran 9,250 pages.

The author switched
publishers twice before Allen & Unwin finally published it in 1954.
Tolkien was not given an advance, and it was agreed that he would earn
nothing until the novel had at least "broken even." It was, of course,
published in three parts. (Initially, Tolkien wanted the third to be
entitled War of the Ring, believing that Return of the
King gave away too much of the plot.) Later that same year, Houghton Mifflin
was more than happy to produce it in the United States.

In 1965, Ace
Books editor Donald A. Wollheim shocked a lot of people by declaring
that he did not consider the work to be protected under U.S. copyright law
because Houghton Mifflin had neglected to apply for one. As a
result, the first American paperback appearances of the work were the
three books you see at the top: Ace A-4, A-5 and A-6. Ace evidently sought approval and
offered royalty payments, but Tolkien took issue
with the paperback format in general and refused. Wollheim decided to
produce it anyway, basing his decision on the fact that these were to be
reprintings of the original, unrevised works that were not available
anywhere else. (The author was constantly tinkering and offering revisions
to the work to provide continuity with his other writings.)

Tolkien had acquired
quite a following by this time, and he began writing directly to some of
his fans in the United States expressing his distaste for Ace's action. He
then immediately signed agreements with Houghton Mifflin and
Ballantine Books to roll the work into "approved" paperback
production. The reaction from fans was intense. Under extreme pressure
from its readers, Ace finally agreed not to reprint its initial run
and to pay Tolkien the royalties it had already set aside (though they
paid no royalties to Houghton Mifflin). The "Authorized Editions" -- it clearly
states so on the covers -- are Ballantine numbers U7040, U7041 and U7042.
They were also "Newly Revised." U7039 is The Hobbit (which, by the way, is the seventh
bestselling novel in history*). The Ballantine books were printed later
that same year (1965).

HOWEVER, Ace won in
one respect. The "unauthorized" paperback books are far more collectible
and valuable today ... especially if they are in the accompanying
slipcase (which was issued later-on as they tried to sell their remaining
stock).

There is MUCH MORE
information on this available to those who are interested. Many thanks to
the members of the Yahoo Vintage Paperback Group who contributed
links and comments.